Best bets for the weekend

Just a week of July left, and the weather is being decent once you wade through the morning clouds. Remember "Sleepless in Seattle" where David Hyde Pierce says, "It rains nine months out of the year in Seattle"? We have that rep for a reason. So elbow your way to the trough and get your fill of summer. It's the big art weekend in Bellevue, and Saturday is Torchlight Parade night. Plenty more on the calendar:

Freshen up: Fresh air, fresh music, fresh takes on Shakespeare. You'll find them all in the rather amazing number of outdoor entertainment venues around Puget Sound this summer. Look here for more information. This weekend's headliner is the Capitol Hill Block Party, for the young, the restless, the pierced and tattooed. Otherwise, look for Music in the Park, Shakespeare in the Park, Cinema on the Lawn and so forth, this weekend in Seattle, Burien, Sammamish, SeaTac, Tukwila, Snoqualmie, Redmond, Kirkland, Des Moines, Everett — Got a map? Throw a dart and you'll find one. See "Performances," in our Weekend Datebook.

Get arty (and outta town): If you're art starved, but you really need to get out of the city and Bellevue isn't far enough, try one of these two bucolic alternatives: the Samish Island Arts Festival, in a Skagit Valley neighborhood where culture is most often used to make yogurt, or the Kitsap Arts & Crafts Festival in Port Gamble, a quaint New England throwback on the west side of our Puget pond.

Sail with the Duke: Or with his larger-than-life spirit, at least. A classic wooden yacht once owned by John Wayne is open for free tours and public sails at Seattle's Center for Wooden Boats.

Luscious lumpia: And much more, of course. (But mmmmm.) Celebrate Filipino American culture this weekend at the Philippine Sampaguita Festival at Great Wall Mall in Kent and the Pista Sa Nayon celebration at Seward Park in Seattle.

High-carb diet: Carb, as in carburetor. More than 2,000 hot rods, custom and classic cars strut their chrome at the Pacific Northwest Nationals Auto Show in Kent. Spectator's challenge: See how many car colors start with the words "Candy Apple."